Lola Flash uses her creative talents to spotlight underrepresented LGBT+ communities

With as imagery as superb as her name, and an M.O that's just as brilliant, photographer Lola Flash uses her creative talents to challenge stereotypes around gender, sexual, and racial norms.

Lola Flash, Shigi, New York, 2008, from the series [sur]passing. Courtesy of the artist Copyright: © Lola Flash

Lola Flash, Shigi, New York, 2008, from the series [sur]passing. Courtesy of the artist Copyright: © Lola Flash

Flash's work focuses on portraiture of underrepresented people and communities. Her new show [sur]passing, curated by Renée Mussai and Bindi Vora, exemplifies her slick blend of art and activism, showcasing "global diasporic figures posed against urban skylines – probing the impact of pigmentation on black identity and consciousness," in the words of Autograph, the gallery showing the work.

The pieces are shown at a huge scale, aiming to pack a punch and remind viewers of the complexities surrounding sexual identity, specifically, the lived experiences of people of colour.

The [sur]passing series will be on show alongside Flash's ongoing series Legends, which is comprised of portraits of prominent members of queer and non-gender conforming communities. Among the artists and activists, she's shot are Ajamu X, Campbell X, MC Chickaboo, Sunil Gupta, Sadie Lee, Robert Taylor and Peter Tatchell.

Flash's practise has retained this smart and razor-sharp focus for the past three decades, since she documented the work of the AIDS Coalition to Unleash Power, known as ACT UP, in the late 1980s.

The show, Lola Flash's first major solo exhibition in London, runs from 26 April-17 August at Autograph, Rivington Place, London EC2A 3BA.

Lola Flash, MC Chicaboo, London, 2018. From the series LEGENDS. Courtesy of the artist and Autograph, London Copyright: © Lola Flash 11

Lola Flash, MC Chicaboo, London, 2018. From the series LEGENDS. Courtesy of the artist and Autograph, London Copyright: © Lola Flash 11

Lola Flash, Raven O, USA, 2017. From the series LEGENDS. Courtesy of the artist Copyright: © Lola Flash

Lola Flash, Raven O, USA, 2017. From the series LEGENDS. Courtesy of the artist Copyright: © Lola Flash

Lola Flash, U is for Upside Down, New York City, 1993. From the series Gay to Z. Courtesy of the artist Copyright: © Lola Flash

Lola Flash, U is for Upside Down, New York City, 1993. From the series Gay to Z. Courtesy of the artist Copyright: © Lola Flash

Lola Flash, Sondra, New York, 2008, from the series [sur]passing. Courtesy of the artist Copyright: © Lola Flash

Lola Flash, Sondra, New York, 2008, from the series [sur]passing. Courtesy of the artist Copyright: © Lola Flash

Lola Flash, Les, London, 2003, from the series [sur]passing. Courtesy of the artist Copyright: © Lola Flash

Lola Flash, Les, London, 2003, from the series [sur]passing. Courtesy of the artist Copyright: © Lola Flash

Lola Flash, Dominque, Brooklyn, NY, 2011, from the series [sur]passing. Courtesy of the artist Copyright: © Lola Flash

Lola Flash, Dominque, Brooklyn, NY, 2011, from the series [sur]passing. Courtesy of the artist Copyright: © Lola Flash

Lola Flash, Dean, London, 2002, from the series [sur]passing. Courtesy of the artist Copyright: © Lola Flash

Lola Flash, Dean, London, 2002, from the series [sur]passing. Courtesy of the artist Copyright: © Lola Flash

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